American Beauty to True Blood: Drama of Alan Ball Now on Offer at Monmouth University:

Have you ever wished that you could study True Blood at university? Well, now you can! Monmouth University has a new freshman seminar course on offer. It is entitled American Beauty to True Blood: Drama of Alan Ball and is being taught by Sheri Anderson (who also wrote a trivia book about True Blood).

This course is designed to help students transition from high school students to university students. While researching True Blood, Sheri Anderson realized just how much the values and lessons hidden within the vampire TV series could help students with one of the biggest upheavals in their young lives:

Many of them are living away from home for the first time, they are trying to figure out who they are as individuals and they are trying to adjust to new social surroundings and everything that transition includes … The reasons I thought this was appropriate for college students is that right now they are at a major turning point in their lives, where they are the new people and they are the ones trying to fit it. So seeing vampires trying to fit into society is funny, it’s dark and it’s interesting, but’s it’s also very human … ‘True Blood’ was able to tackle the very grown up issues dealing with fitting in to the main stream and stepping ‘out of the coffin. Depending through which lens you are viewing it, that could be a civil rights metaphor, it could be a gay rights metaphor or it could just be someone who is on the outside just trying to fit in.

During the this freshman seminar course, students are able to view three episodes of HBO’sTrue Blood and then are instructed to find journal articles and secondary source materials that relate to what they have learnt.

Surprisingly, this is not the first time Professor Anderson has taught True Blood related courses at Monmouth.

Let us know your thoughts on studying True Blood at university by commenting below!

…Tears for Many of the True Blood Cast:

It turns out it’s not just the fans of departing HBO show, True Blood, that are crying up a storm – the cast are now tearing up at the table read of the True Blood Season 7 finale! TV Line had this exclusive to share in regards to True Blood’s very last episode ever:

The table read for the series finale took place earlier this week, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house, Stephen Moyer confirms. “People turned up that we hadn’t seen for ages — [series creator] Alan [Ball] was there,” he tells TVLine. “We’re sitting in the same room we’ve been reading in for seven years… that stuff’s really deep.”

So, already, the tears are flowing… from me, and I don’t even know what goes down in the Season 7 finale!

Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer and Alexander Skarsgard Reminisce:

While fans are gearing up for True Blood Season 7, HBO has released a True Blood special promo that just might help ease the way as fans lament over the show’s demise. On Sunday June 15th at 8.30pm, fans can tune into HBO for a Farewell to Bon Temps special.

While a lot of the footage in this clip is from past episodes, there are still a few gems hidden. Alan Ball (the show’s original show runner) talks about why people love vampires so much, Stephen Moyer (Bill Compton) talks about falling in love and Kristin Bauer van Straten (who plays vampire Pam) talks about the difficulty with using different languages on True Blood.

But the true surprise is the fact that Alexander Skarsgard (who plays Eric Northman) FINALLY gets some air time. Previously, every promo has excluded the viking vampire, leaving fans wondering just how and when this character will be portrayed in True Blood Season 7. Not only do we get a visual of the tall blonde actor, but we get these words of wisdom:

It’s going to be very emotional, this final season.

Sure, it’s not much, but at least we have the very first sighting of Alexander Skarsgard! You can watch the full clip below, and don’t forget to bookmark 8.30 pm on Sunday June 15th 2014 in order to watch this great farewell special!

How do you think Eric Northman will be portrayed in True Blood Season 7? Also, how many episodes do you think will pass before we see him? Let us know in the comments below.

Alan Ball, the former show runner of HBO’s True Blood, attended the season 6 premier party. Here’s what he thought about the premier:

“I loved it. I thought it was the perfect mix of scares, action and humor. It really makes me want to see what happens next.”

Ball spoke about the show burning him and enjoying his break from working. So what exactly is he up to? Is he planning any upcoming projects?

“I have a series idea that I’m working on and writing on spec and have two screenplays I’m trying to put together. And I’m working on another one, and then I have another one that’s halfway finished. [The show] is unlike either Six Feet Under or True Blood; it’s very different. I’d definitely say it’s a drama, but it’s too early to talk about.”

To read more about what Alan Ball has been up to since leaving True Blood, check out the links below!

Bite Into the True Blood Cookbook:

With 45 easy, quick recipes, all famished fans alike can experience delicacies inspired by the places and people of Bon Temps in the True Blood cookbook True Blood Drinks & Bites.
Straight from True Blood creator Alan Ball and his team, these tantalizing appetizers, cocktails and other drinks are perfect for themed occasions of watching the hit HBO series. With names like “Scorn Fritters” and “Spirit Lifter” plus special commentaries from the characters themselves and unpublished photography, this book is sure to be a treat for any fan(gbanger)!
Source: True Blood Drinks & Bites

HBO Stalwart, Brian Buckner, to Take His Place:

News has just been received that Alan Ball’s replacement for Season 6 of True Blood, Mark Hudis, has stepped down from the popular HBO show after 4 episodes! While Hudis was picked to replace Ball after only being with the show since Season 4, Brian Buckner has been with True Blood since Season 1. It is a worry that Hudis has found it hard to fill Ball’s shoes and has been quoted as saying:

It’s impossible to fill Alan Ball’s shoes … really, this plane is in the air, and I just want to land it safely.

Hudis has signed a two year contract with HBO, but it appears that he will possibly be focusing more on the developmental side of his contract now.

Do you think this sudden change of leadership will help or hinder Season 6? Let us know in the comments below.

True Blood coming to an end:

Since Alan Ball, creator of HBO’s True Blood, has left the show, rumors have been running amok that the upcoming season of True Blood could be it’s final.

It’s no secret that shows can’t last without their foundation. Another potential piece of evidence? The’s show will be putting forth 10 episodes instead of it’s usual 12. However, Alan Ball was quoted as saying that it was due to the economy and to help accommodate Anna Paquin’s (Sookie Stackhouse) pregnancy.

What do you think Truebies? Will True Blood face the true death after Season 6?

The Fearless HBO Drama Adds to the Vampire Phenomena:

True Blood has touched almost every taboo topic from sex to voodoo. It’s no wonder they chose politics and religion for the premise of season five!

The complex vampire politics that dominated this most recent season were brought to life through the new character of Roman Zimojic played by Christopher Meloni. This terrifying Authority leader fiercely believed in a moral coexistence between the vampires and humans and carried out his belief through the vampire movement of “mainstreaming.”

The political aspect of the show seemed to come at an appropriate time for creator Alan Ball. He said:

“Some of the things being said by some people during the Republican primary were so horrifying to me that I thought, ‘What if vampires wanted a theocracy? What would that look like?’ Whenever anybody thinks they know what God wants and wants to apply that to government, whether Americans or the Taliban, it’s kind of a terrifying thing.”

Although religion had been touched on in past seasons, such as Steve Newlin’s (Michael McMillian) ardent Fellowship of the Sun religious group and Jesus’s (Kevin Alejandro) family voodoo, the vampire queen Lilith and her effects on the vampires of the show bring the fifth season to a whole new level.

True Blood continues to add to the vampire myth with its concept of vampires in a group as a race living among humans. Early myths portray vampires as simply humans under an evil possession, according to Mark Jenkins in his book Vampire Forensics. In Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the vampire is demonic, he abuses humans, and is quite sexual, preying on women. The myths seem to change and develop as they are passed down to other people and cultures.

In True Blood, however, as vampires suddenly “come out of the coffin” and live among humans in modern day society, they have broken the established order. Although the vampires of the show are not demonic as they have been portrayed to be in other vampire stories, they represent a mistreated, misunderstood race, especially when compared to other species (shape-shifters, fairies, and even humans) who have also shown how they cruel they can be.

As great as a concept as it is, the provocative HBO drama was not the first to introduce a vampire society. It’s also seen in Anne Rice’s Interview with a Vampire. In her Vampire Chronicles, readers drew parallels between the vampires and the gay community of real life. Rice retorted that her book was “bigger than any gay allegory, and so is any gay allegory,” going on to explain:

“Gender influences everything but determines nothing! Vampires transcend gender. We as a modern people transcend gender, though we can never escape it. Ours is a time for which there are no precedents with regard to gender and freedom. Look in vain to ancient Rome. Look in vain to the Middle Ages. There has never been so much affluence, scientific knowledge and so much common awareness of violence and injustice. There has never been so much real wealth for so many, combined with instantaneous media confrontation of poverty and suffering. Some of us see life as a horror story, but a horror story with great, great meaning.”

True Blood also draws similar parallels to real society roles, politics, and religion throughout all five of its seasons, sometimes conjuring up more mischief than the characters can manage! With all of this behind them, can’t wait to see what the upcoming sixth season will bring to them!

After seeing the thrilling, question-raising, True Blood Season 5 finale, I knew I wasn’t the only one to be sad when Russell Edgington(Denis O’Hare) met his unfortunate end at Eric Northman‘s (Alex Skarsgård) hands! True Blood creator Alan Ball gushes that writing the scene was “emotional” for himself as well:

“I get really upset when I write scenes where characters that I love die.”

Going on to express how hard it was to write, complimenting the spectacular portrayal by actor Denis O’Hare, he also adds,

“…but it is True Blood, and he’s done some pretty heinous things.”

Ball knew Eric would have to be the one to do it since Russell had “destroyed Eric’s life” by originally killing his human family. He says:

“It’s blood vengeance. It’s primal, it’s mythic, and all of those things that can do well on a show like True Blood.”

Director Michael Lehmann also notes:

“It’s really fun and interesting that Sookie’s fear is what draws Eric there. That’s kind of a great moment, and that Eric comes in and completely surprises Russell in his moment of glory.”

With Season 6 in the future, Ball hints that questions raised in Season 5 will be addressed, including more information about Warlow and how Jason will deal with it.

As for the big final moment with Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) and the blood in the Season 5 finale, Ball explains it as:

“a gigantic challenge for Sookie, because for all intents and purposes, she sees him die and then be reborn as something alien and terrifying.”

Lehmann points out that “it’s pretty clear where Eric is emotionally and where he stands.” However, he wonders most about Bill, since “he went so dark at the end of this episode.